Beautiful Castles in Florida

All the great castles located in the state of Florida. All of these castles are open to the public and offer tours and all are worth a visit.

Presented here are twelve castles in Florida. All of these great castles located in Florida are open to the public and many of them are very popular tourist attractions. Some of the castles were built by eccentric artists and millionaires, others were built specifically as tourist attractions and a few more were built by a public institution. A few of these castles function as hotels and many of them are available to be rented out for weddings, parties and special events and occasions.

Solomons Castle is a tourist attraction in Ona, Florida built and run by sculptor and artist Howard Solomon. Solomons Castle certainly has a unique shiny look and contains artwork by Solomon and others. The castle is open for tours, run as a hotel with overnight lodging available and also has a restaurant and numerous gardens. Solomons Castle is located in the middle of nowhere at 4533 Solomons Castle Road in Ona about 22 miles southwest of Wauchula and 22 miles northwest of Arcadia, Florida. For more info call 863-494-6077.

Zorayda Castle is located at 83 King Street in St. Augustine, Florida. Built in 1883 as the winter home of Boston hardware millionaire Franklin W. Smith, Zorayda Castle has many Spanish features and contains many pieces of artwork and period furniture set in opulent style. Zorayda Castle is open to the public today and is also available to be rented out for weddings and special occasions. For more info call 904-829-9887.

Located on the Florida State University Campus in Tallahassee, Florida is the Wescott Building Castle. Built in 1909 the castle-like building was originally called the Administration Building but the name was changed to the Wescott Building in 1936 to honor James Westcott, Jr. who donated large sums of money to the university and was a Florida Supreme Court justice. Tours of the Florida State University campus including Westcott Castle are available. For more info call 850-644-1000.

Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida has been thrilling kids and adults since it was completed in 1971. It is twice the size of the Sleeping Beauty Castle located at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. While Cinderella Castle is mainly for kids did you know that Disney World hosts many themed weddings every year?

Castle Ottis is located about 3 miles north of St. Augustine, Florida on Highway A1A. Built from 1984 to 1991 Castle Otttis was created to honor the memory of Jesus Christ and create a place of peace upon earth. Located along the same latitude as the Pyramids in Egypt the Castle Otttis exterior was built to look like an Irish medieval castle from 1,000 years ago while the interior was modeled after what an Irish Abbey would have looked like from the same time period. Castle Otttis hosts an interdenominational Christian service and bible study Sundays at 11 am and is also available for private tours by appointment and caters to schools, church groups, colleges, universities and community groups. For more info call 904-824-3274.

Coral Castle is a big tourist attraction located at 28655 South Dixie Highway in Homestead, Florida. Coral Castle consists of large coral stone blocks and sculptures placed inside a garden all contained inside castle walls. The coral blocks and sculptures as well as the rest of Coral Castle were all created by Latvian artist Edward Leedskalnin. Leedskalnin created the Coral Castle from 1923 to 1951 working by himself and today it is a mystery how he was able to move the huge blocks of coral stone around since he was only 5 feet tall and weighed but 100 pounds. What he created is a unique experience that people from all over the world travel to see. For more info visit the Coral Castle homepage.

Castillo de San Marcos is a castle-like masonry fort built beginning in 1672 which makes it one of the oldest forts built in the United States. Located at 1 South Castillo Drive right on the coast in St. Augustine, Florida the fort is part of the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument which is run by the National Park Service. Fully open to the public visitors to the Castillo de San Marcos castle-fort can walk along the ramparts high above the ground and get a small sense of what very early America was like in Florida and learn the fascinating history of the fort.

Castle Warden is located at 19 San Marco Avenue in St. Augustine, Florida. Built in 1887 by millionaire William Warden the castle was Warden's wintertime home but eventually became a hotel. One of hotel's guests was Robert Leroy Ripley who founded Ripley's Believe It or Not! In 1949 the Ripley company purchased Warden Castle and turned it into the first Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium where all kinds of curiosities are still displayed today.

Bryan Hall is a castle-like dormitory building located on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. Bryan Hall was built in 1907 and is the oldest building at FSU still standing. It was named in honor of Florida Senator William James Bryan. Students must be members of the Bryan Hall Learning Community to live in the suite-style Bryan Hall Castle. Tours of the Florida State University campus including Bryan Castle are available. For more info call 850-644-1000.

The Holy Land Castle is located at 4655 Vineland Road in Orlando, Florida on the grounds of the Holyland Experience Ministries. Built as a religious theme exhibit and biblical museum by Marvin Rosenthal inside the castle visitors can watch biblical plays and shows and view holy land themed exhibits.Opened in 2001 at a cost of $15 million the Holy Land Castle was sold to the Trinity Broadcasting Network (which was co-founded by Jim and Tammy Faye Baker) in 2007 for $37 million and is still open to the public as a religious theme park. For more info see the Holylandexperience website.

Fort Mantanzas Castle was built in the early 1740's by the Spanish to guard Mantanzas Inlet at the mouth of the Mantanzas River along the east coast of Florida south of St. Augustine. Today Fort Mantanzas Castle is part of the Fort Mantanzas National Monument run by the National Park Service. Fort Mantanzas is fully open to the public but visitors must take a very short 5 minute ferry ride to the castle. For more info visit the Fort Mantanzas National Monument homepage.

Located at Universal Studios Resort in Orlando, Florida is the Hogwart's Castle at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction. Opened in June of 2010 the Hogwart's Castle in Orlando is sure to be a hit with kids and adults alike and help keep the hotels in Orlando filled.

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